The Struggle for Good Governance in Eastern Europe

The Struggle for Good Governance in Eastern Europe PDF

Author: Michael Emerson

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2018-10-15

Total Pages: 311

ISBN-13: 1786607913

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At a time when many regions of the world, including Europe, see a resurgence of authoritarianism, three countries of Eastern Europe – Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova – are struggling to counter this trend with the aim of developing European-style democracies in the framework of their Association Agreements with the European Union. This book offers an in-depth analysis of this challenge, with expert contributions on the workings of these countries’ democratic and judicial institutions, their anti-corruption policies and the hazards they must overcome, including the strong presence of oligarchs. Other themes include how these countries are adapting to their precarious geo-political positioning between the EU and Russia and how the quality of their political and economic governance compares with the Balkan states. The book complements three landmark Handbooks (now in their 2nd edition and also published by Rowman & Littlefield International) explaining the progress achieved in implementing the comprehensive Association Agreements that each of these countries has entered into with the EU. The struggle to advance good democratic governance in these close neighbours of the EU represents a test case of the highest strategic significance for both the EU and the three states themselves. For the most part, the jury is still out over its outcome.

Good Governance in Central and Eastern Europe

Good Governance in Central and Eastern Europe PDF

Author: Herman Willem Hoen

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 2001-01-01

Total Pages: 176

ISBN-13: 9781782543206

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'Undeniably Good Governance in Central and Eastern Europe provides many insights in the political economy of institutional reform and constitutes an important contribution to the growing literature on "second-generation" reforms.' - Carlos Santiso, Democratization The implementation of a democratic order embedded in a market economy environment has proved immensely difficult. Furthermore, this process is subject to tremendous variety within Central and Eastern Europe. Ten years after the collapse of communism it was apparent that only Poland and Slovenia surpassed their 1989 levels of GDP. This book scrutinises the arrangements to enforce good governance in this area both by means of external help and domestic political leadership. From the popular assumption that transformation is a collective good, it follows that the problem of free-riding has to be faced. Consequently there is a danger that transformation may never be completed. This book empirically tests the relationship between economic performance and good governance focusing upon voluntary coercion as a means to prevent free-riding behaviour. The author examines the role of international organisations and discusses elite formation as an important element of good governance - something often ignored in the economic analysis of economic performance.

Good Governance and the European Union

Good Governance and the European Union PDF

Author: Deirdre Curtin

Publisher: Intersentia nv

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 9050953816

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This book approaches the notion of good governance from three different angles. First it establishes whether it is a meaningful notion at all by taking a closer look at the parameters of good governance. Secondly, the authors look at the institutional translation of the criteria of good governance. In a third dimension, the concept may be analysed in relation to a number of substantive issues.

The Political History of Eastern Europe in the 20th Century

The Political History of Eastern Europe in the 20th Century PDF

Author: Sten Berglund

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 216

ISBN-13:

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This text presents an introduction to the struggle between democracy and dictatorship in Eastern Europe since 1900. It is broken down into three different parts focusing on those time periods when experiments with democracy threatened to change the established order - the inter-war period, the democratic or semi democratic interlude in the wake of World War II until 1949 and the current experience with the new democracies. In discussing the struggle between democracy and dictatorship, the authors argue that the experience of Eastern Europe reveals the challenges which threaten democracy and the conditions necessary for the survival of democratic government.

Europe's Burden

Europe's Burden PDF

Author: Alina Mungiu-Pippidi

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2019-12-05

Total Pages: 329

ISBN-13: 1108683347

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The EU is many things: a civilization ideal to emulate, an anchor of geopolitical stabilization, a generous donor and a historical lesson on cooperation across nations. A fixer of national governance problems, however, it is not. In this book, Mungiu-Pippidi investigates the efficacy of the European Union's promotion of good governance through its funding and conditionalities both within EU proper and in the developing world. The evidence assembled shows that the idea of European power to transform the quality of governance is largely a myth. From Greece to Egypt and from Kosovo to Turkey, EU interventions in favour of good governance and anti-corruption policy have failed so far to trigger the domestic political dynamic needed to ensure sustainable change. Mungiu-Pippidi explores how we can better bridge the gap between the Europe of treaties and the reality of governance in Europe and beyond. This book will interest students and scholars of comparative politics, European politics, and development studies, particularly those examining governance and corruption.

The Revival of Balkanization

The Revival of Balkanization PDF

Author: Martin Mendelski

Publisher:

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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What impact does the European Union (EU) and other international donors have on the development of good governance in South Eastern Europe (SEE)? The comparative analysis shows that the externally-driven good governance reforms improve substantive legality (the alignment of domestic legislation with international best standards), state capacity and efficiency but weaken formal legality (the inner morality of law), many aspects of impartiality and the coherence of state structures and policies. As a result, good governance is undermined. To explain the persistence and reproduction of bad (i.e. fragmented) governance, the author offers a “vicious reform cycle” explanation, in which a fragmented governance structure is reproduced by competing and factionalized actors and by fragmented and politicized reform and policy processes. The implication is that externally-induced reforms, instead of allowing to transition towards good governance, are reproducing Balkanization and “bad governance”, i.e. fragmented, unaccountable, personalized and instable state structures, policies and formal rules. The main argument is supported by a mixed method study. A quantitative indicator-based analysis measures the development of good governance across six dimensions between 2003 and 2015. Qualitative interviews (with judicial and political representatives from SEE, the EU and international organizations), relevant data and secondary sources offer revealing insights on processes of hybridization and fragmentation.

The Transformation of Governance in the European Union

The Transformation of Governance in the European Union PDF

Author: Beate Kohler-Koch

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 342

ISBN-13: 041521548X

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The Transformation of Governance in the European Union presents a theoretically informed typology of modes of governance which is tested in a careful selection of comparative country and policy studies.

Reinventing Politics

Reinventing Politics PDF

Author: Vladimir Tismaneanu

Publisher:

Published: 1992

Total Pages: 360

ISBN-13:

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Will the nations of Eastern Europe become liberal democracies? How has more than 40 years of totalitarian rule transformed the East European psyche? How ill the emerging realities of Eastern Europe affect the rest of Europe and the world? In an effort to answer these questions, Romanian-born scholar Vladimir Tismaneuanu chronicles the turbulent history of this embattled region, from the decades of Soviet domination to the momentous events leading up to and following the Revolution of 1989. He views Eastern Europe as being on the threshold of a great opportunity -- to become reunited, through pan-European arrangements, with the West, and thereby recover its truly European identity. -- From publisher's description.

The Russian Economic Grip on Central and Eastern Europe

The Russian Economic Grip on Central and Eastern Europe PDF

Author: Ogni︠a︡n Shentov

Publisher:

Published: 2018-10-08

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 9781351109369

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This book is about the use of economic and state capture levers for achieving political clout. It details how Moscow has been able to exploit governance deficits and influence decision-making in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe through a range of economic means. The comparative country by country perspective on Russia's corporate presence, trade, and investment in particular sectors of the region, especially energy, shows the patterns of the Kremlin's use of economic presence and state capture tactics to amplify political and social leverage. By collating economic data with an analysis of governance loopholes and the political process, the authors reveal the Kremlin's methods for swaying national policies, especially through the exploitation of governance failures in these countries. The book thereby highlights how Russia's economic power is related to its wider strategic goals. It concludes that Russia's economic grip, both direct and indirect, is tighter than official statistics imply.